Gorgeous!!!

I've been able to try many PDAs in recent months. My only keeper is the IIIxe. This Palm Vx is virtually identical in operation to the IIIxe. The big attraction is the sleek, lightweight aluminum case in a smaller package. In recent days the price has come down to around $400 (vs. $250 for the IIIxe)which has made this even more attractive.

The extra $150 is worth it for status and if the size and weight are attractive to you. I first thought - GREAT - it will fit in my shirt pocket but soon found out that this is a VERY bad idea. Bend over and CRASH - it can easily fall to the floor. At the end of my trial I came to believe that the more attractive, eye catching package was the only consideration over the IIIxe.

There is 4x the memory at 8 MB as compared to the Palm V. The new Palms upgrade the Palm OS with some nice features, 2 MB of flash ROM, the IR beaming feature to communicate with other Palms, full MS Outlook synching Email, Calendar, Address Book, Memo Pad etc.) and last but not least the little talked about AvantGo software. With this feature you can download as many as 23 websites (in pocket version) at each synching. Not as good as real time web browsing but hey...it's free! You'd pay as much as $45 a month for not much more on the Palm VII.

It quickly becomes a part of your life by way of it's ability to help organize. The standard Palm OS includes:

EMAIL

While you can download and upload from your desktop you cannot send without a modem. You can read, write, upload to your desktop and then send.

DATE BOOK

This is the can't live without scheduler feature. As good as it is Datebook 4 is an optional downloadable program for $25 you simply must try. It has has 45 trial period.

MEMO PAD

Write notes, email (cut and paste) etc.

EXPENSES

Template program to track all expenses.

TO DO LIST

Self explanatory.

ADDRESS BOOK

Templates with room for virtually unlimited names, addresses, phone numbers, notes etc.

I've added additional software since my purchase of the IIIxe which I also added to the Vx. The choices are almost endless. I work with many foreign countries and added a French, Spanish and Italian word and phrase translator.

There are many web sites where you can download free and other Palm OS compatable software. Some other programs I've added are enhancements to the existing Palm installed software that makes it more flexible, a function which allows screen writing with the ability to save messages in your own handwriting, measurement converter, stop watch, image viewer, two readers to download books and magazines, an advanced scientific calculator, a world time clock, and lots of fun stuff including...of course...games. It's applications like these which you might not even know about now that should lead you to buy the most memory - which is currently 8 MB for the Vx instead of only 2 MB for the Palm V.

The Palm OS does makes amazing use of memory though, and the amount of stuff you can load on is mind boggling. If you go with the Palm V you should be fine except for AvantGo which uses ton of memory.

If the smaller, more attractive size doesn't interest you and you want to save $150, get the Palm IIIxe. But if you want a sleek, state of the art version of the IIIxe this Palm Vx is for you. If your memory needs are more modest and you want the style of the Vx go with the Palm V now selling for around $300. Also consider the Palm IIIe which is almost the same as the Palm V but in the plainer package - like the Palm IIIxe - and is only $150.

In any event the Palm OS still beats out the MS Pocket PC PDAs by a wide margin. Color is the only missing ingredient and I assume they all will have color screens within a couple of years.